Toy parachute releasable from a kite string

ABSTRACT

A toy parachute for being attached to and traveling up a kite string with the wind and for being released from the string for free flight to the ground. The toy includes a weight, a parachute having shroud lines attached to the weight, a carrier mechanism connected to the weight for movably engaging the kite string, and a mechanism for releasing the carrier device from the string. One embodiment of the toy parachute includes an aerodynamic device having an aperture which permits the carrier mechanism to pass therethrough and engage the string, and which prevents the weight from similarly passing through the aperture. When the carrier mechanism is released from the string, the aerodynamic device and parachute toy separate and individually free flight to the ground. In a second embodiment of the invention, the carrier mechanism comprises a pulley having a groove formed therearound for rotatably engaging the kite string. In the third embodiment of the invention, the release mechanism consists of an elongate member having a conical surface shaped such that the carrier device travels on to and off of the conical surface into the air.

This invention relates to an improved toy parachute for traveling up astring, in particular a kite string, with the wind and for beingreleased for free descent to the ground upon jerking of the string.

In another respect this invention relates to a toy parachute which maybe optionally used in combination with other toy flight devices whichengage the toy parachute while the parachute travels up the string, andthen disengage from the toy parachute after the toy parachute isreleased from the kite string such that the flight device and toyparachute separately free flight to the ground.

In still another respect this invention relates to an improved toyparachute which may be optionally used in combination with a releasedevice which is mounted on the string and disengages the toy parachutefrom the string for free flight to the ground.

Retaining clips which are attached to a kite string and carry toyparachutes or other flight devices and travel up a kite string by actionof the wind against the toys and which then release the toys oncontacting a fixed abutment in the kite string are well known in theart. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 2,469,449 to Baskin, U.S. Pat. No.2,471,199 to Coyne, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,473,213 to Nissen. After suchknown carrying clips strike the abutment in the string and release thetoy flight devices into the air, the clip remains on and travels downthe string toward the person holding the kite string.

Although such known carrying clips are of simple construction and placerelatively little weight on the string in addition to the flight devicebeing carried by the clip, because of the fixed position of the releaseabutment on the string a person flying a kite has no convenient controlas to when the toy flight device may be released. If a person desires toalter the release position he must reel in the kite and reposition theabutment along the string. In solution of this problem there is priorart apparatus which allows a person flying a kite some measure ofimmediate control in determining where along the kite line the carryingclip is to release the toys. This particular prior art apparatus allowssome measure of control in determining the release position by, afterthe carrying clip is in the desired position, providing a releaseabutment which is placed on the kite string, is pushed up the string bythe wind, and strikes the clip to release the toy flight devices.However, with this apparatus the carrying clip still remains on thestring and the position of the clip may change while the releaseabutment is traveling up the string.

The foregoing prior art devices, which employ a carrying clip whichremains on the string after release of the toys attached to the clip,were improved upon by further prior art apparatus wherein a person canattach a toy parachute to a kite string and both release the toyparachute at whatever point he wishes and release the toy without havinga carrying device remain on the kite line. In this particular prior artapparatus, a hook, attached to the canopy of the toy parachute, isplaced on the kite string. The wind then carries the parachute up alongthe kite line, and the hook is released by jerking the kite string. SeeU.S. Pat. No. 3,871,605 by Kupperman et al.

There are two problems generally associated with this last prior artdevice. First, connecting the hook to the canopy of the parachute causesthe weight attached to the shroud lines of the parachute to tend to pullthe canopy opening or mouth toward the ground, so that the mouth of thecanopy does not effectively catch the wind. Second, if the weightcarried by the shroud lines is lightened so the canopy can more easilyposition itself to catch the wind, the canopy has a tendency to rise andpull the hook off the kite line prior to the time a person desires torelease the toy parachute into free flight.

Another drawback of the prior art toy parachute is that it cannot carryand release additional flight devices as can the prior art carrying clipdevices which remain on the kite string after the toy flight deviceshave been released from the clip.

Lastly, if the prior art toy parachute is attached to and travels up anunusually long expanse of kite string, jerking the hook off the stringtends to be more difficult.

Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an improved toyparachute which would attach to a kite string, travel up the string withthe wind and be releasable with a jerk of the string, and yet wouldallow the canopy of the parachute to freely position itself with andcatch the wind.

It would also be advantageous to provide such a toy parachute whichcould optionally be used in combination with and carry another flightdevice while traveling up the kite line and, when the toy parachute wasreleased from the string, which would separate from the other flightdevice so that both would free flight to the ground.

It would further be highly desirable to provide a release device thatcould be mounted on the kite line and, especially in the case of anunusually long kite string, could be used in combination with and torelease the improved toy parachute from the string.

It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to providean improved toy parachute which can be attached to a kite string so thatthe parachute canopy can freely position itself with and catch the wind,and which can travel up the string with the wind and be released byjerking the kite line.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a toy parachutewhich can optionally be used in combination with and carry anotherflight device while traveling up the kite string and, once the toyparachute is released from the string, which can separate from theflight device so that the flight device and toy parachute separatelydescend to the ground.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a toyparachute which can optionally be used in combination with a releasedevice mounted along the kite string, wherein the release device willdisengage the toy parachute from the kite line.

These and other, further and more specific objects and advantages of theinvention will become apparent from the following detailed descriptionthereof, taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the mode of operation of a toyparachute embodying the present invention in optional combination with atoy glider;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the glider and toy parachuteof FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the toy parachute and glider of FIG. 2taken along section line 3--3;

FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of the presently preferredembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view illustrating an optional wheel andaxle assembly being used to attach the toy parachute to a kite string;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the optional wheel and axle of FIG. 5taken along section line 6--6;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the toy parachute optionallycombined with a toy glider;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the toy parachute and toy glider of FIG. 7taken along section line 8--8;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of a releasedevice to be used in combination with the toy parachute;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the release device of FIG. 9 taken alongsection line 10--10;

FIG. 11 is a rear view of the release device of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the releasedevice;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the releasedevice;

FIG. 14 is a perspective of a further embodiment of the release device;

FIG. 15 is a perspective of yet another embodiment of the releasedevice;

FIG. 16 is a rear view of the release device of FIG. 15; and

FIG. 17 is a sectional view of the release device of FIG. 15 taken alongline 17--17.

Briefly, in accordance with my invention, I provide an improved toyparachute for being attached to and traveling up a kite string with thewind and for being released from said string for free flight to theground.

The toy parachute consists of a weight, a parachute having a canopy anda plurality of shroud lines, the shroud lines being separately attachedto the canopy at their upper ends and attached to the weight at theirlower ends, and of attachable means, connected to the weight, formovably engaging the kite string and being releasable from the stringinto the air when the string is jerked.

The toy parachute may be used in combination with another toy flightdevice, such toy flight device being comprised of at least one memberhaving surfaces generally shaped, contoured and dimensioned such thatmovement of the flight device through the air provides aerodynamic liftfor the device, and of means for engaging the weight of the toyparachute while the attachable means of the toy parachute is in contactwith the string and responsive when the attachable means is releasedfrom the string into the air to disengage from the weight, such that theflight device and the toy parachute separately free flight to theground.

In addition, the toy parachute may be used in combination with a releasedevice for disengaging the attachable means from the string and forreleasing the toy parachute for free flight to the ground. The releasedevice consists of an elongate member adapted to be mounted on thestring and having at least one surface generally shaped, contoured anddimensioned such that the attachable means of the toy parachutetraveling along the string tracks onto and off the surface into the airand the toy parachute is released into free flight, and of means forpositioning the elongate member along the string.

Turning now to the drawings, which are provided for the purpose ofillustrating the practice of the invention and which do not constitutelimitations on the scope thereof, FIG. 1 illustrates the presentlypreferred embodiment of the invention, generally indicated by thereference character 10, optionally carrying a toy glider 11 and attachedto the kite string 13. The string 13 is connected to a kite 14 at itsupper end and held by a person 15 at its lower end. The kite line 13 maybe optionally connected to a pole 14a.

As shown in FIGS. 2-4, the presently preferred embodiment of theinvention consists of a parachute canopy 15, with a plurality of shroudlines 16 attached at their upper ends to the canopy 15 and at theirlower ends to a weight 17 with feet 17a. A hook member 18 is adapted tobe attached to the weight 17.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the glider 11 is adapted to be carried by theweight 17 by means of an aperture 19 sized to accept passage of the hook18 and sized to prevent passage of the feet 17a of the weight 17.

In operation, the glider 11 rests on the feet 17a of the weight 17 whilethe hook member 18 travels up the string 13. When the string 13 isjerked and the hook member 18 released, the toy parachute 10 and glider11, after disengaging, separately free flight to the ground.

Alternate pulley means, generally indicated by the reference number 12,of engaging the string 13 is shown attached to the weight 17 in FIGS. 5and 6. The alternate means 12 consists of a grooved pulley 19 andaperture 21 through the center of the pulley 19 which receives an arm 23of an axle member 22. The arm 22b of axle member 22 connects axle member22 to the weight 17.

In FIGS. 7 and 8 a toy glider 23 is optionally carried by the toyparachute 10. The toy glider 23 is provided with an aperture 24 sized toreceive the grooved wheel 19 and member 22 and sized to prevent passageof the feet 17a of the weight 17. In operation, when the kite string 13is jerked and the toy parachute 10 is released from the kite string 13,the wheel 19 and member 22 pass through the aperture 24 so that the toyparachute 10 and the toy glider 23 separate and individually free flightto the ground.

FIGS. 9-11 illustrate the presently preferred embodiment of the releasedevice to be used in combination with the toy parachute. The releasedevice, generally indicated by the reference character 25, is comprisedof a hollow elongate conical member 26 provided with four outwardlyprojecting depending fins 27. The fins 27 are generally evenly spacedabout the circumference of the conical member 26 and have leadingsurfaces 27a beginning generally adjacent and parallel to and linearlydiverging away from the string 13. The release device 25 is positionedalong the string by a knot 13a.

When the release device 25 is used in combination with the toy parachute10, the hook member 18 or pulley means 12, after tracking along thestring 13 and onto an outer edge 27a of fin 27, travel off the edge 27ainto the air allowing the toy parachute 10 to free flight to the ground.

FIG. 12 illustrates another embodiment of the release device andincludes an elongate conically shaped member 28 with a cylindricalaperture 29 extending linearly from the tip of member 28 to the centerof the base of the member 28. The member 28 is optionally slidably androtatably mounted on the string 13. A stop 20 positions the releasedevice along the string 13.

FIG. 13 illustrates yet another embodiment of the release device andincludes an elongate pyramid shaped member 31 with a cylindricalaperture 32 extending linearly from the tip of the member 31 to thecenter of the base of the member 31. The member 31 is optionallyslidably and rotatably mounted on the string 13.

FIG. 14 illustrates still another embodiment of the release device andincludes a generally U-shaped hollow tubing 33 mounted on the string 13.The tubing 33 may be manually moved along the string 13, but frictionbetween the string 13 and tubing 33 otherwise holds the tubing 33 inplace along the string 13.

FIG. 15 illustrates a further embodiment of the release device includingan elongate hollow conical member 34 with four outwardly projectingdepending triangular fins 35. Leading surfaces 35a of the fins 35 begingenerally adjacent and parallel to and curvingly diverge from the string13.

As will be apparent to those skilled in the art the release deviceembodiments illustrated in FIGS. 12-17 can be utilized in combinationwith the toy parachute 10 of FIGS. 1-8 to release the toy parachute 10into free flight to the ground.

Having described my invention in such full, clear, concise and exactterms as to enable those skilled in the art to which it pertains tounderstand and practice it, and having described the presently preferredembodiments thereof, I claim:
 1. In combination with a toy parachute forbeing attached to and traveling up a kite string with the wind and forbeing released from said string for free flight to the ground, said toyparachute including,a weight, a parachute having a canopy and aplurality of shroud lines, said shroud lines being separately attachedto said canopy at their upper ends and attached to said weight at theirlower ends, carrier means, connected to said weight, for movablyengaging said kite string, and means for releasing said carrier meansfrom said string into the air for free flight to the ground,a device forflight, comprising, (a) at least one member having(i) surfaces generallyshaped, contoured and dimensioned such that movement of said devicethrough the air provides aerodynamic lift for said device, and (ii) anaperture sized to permit said carrier means to pass therethrough andengage said string, and (b) means contacting said weight when saidcarrier means is engaging said string for preventing passage of saidweight through said aperture,said device responsive when said carriermeans is released from said string into the air to allow said carriermeans to pass through said aperture and to disengage said weight fromsaid device such that said device and said toy separately free flight tothe ground.